War of Time

The five magnificently told narratives that make up War of Time are true for all the times they evoke from our own back to that of Noah. Each of them is a success in its own right, each complements the other four. In "The Highroad of Saint James," a man goes on a pilgrimage from Antwerp through Europe to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. In "Right of Sanctuary," a modern political refugee finds an inexplicable new life in the embassy of a foreign nation. "Journey Back to the Source" relates the strange and meaningful occurrences accompanying the demolition of an old house. "Like the Night" is the story of a Greek girl trying to satisfy her future husband’s craving for profane love and meeting a curious rebuff. In "The Chosen," more than one Noah sets out upon the waters to preserve the future. Everywhere in these narratives an extraordinarily rich and imaginative mind speculates upon, evokes, and criticizes the human condition and what men do in accepting and altering it. Carpentier’s writing is of the rarest depth and resonance.